I

was born as ^th in New York. Ever since I was young, I had shown unique qualities that my siblings did not possess. When asked to perform some chores in the house, mine would be thoroughly done and finished on time, something that earned some jealousy from my siblings. They envied the way my parents applauded my thoroughly done job. However, I was humble and tried my best to show my siblings that it was only within me to do everything wholeheartedly without leaving any traces. It has been in my nature to live at peace with everyone, and I think that personality started to show right in my childhood. In that case, I became an instrument that followed every instruction given without question, in the name of obedience. Little did I know that it could make me live other people’s lives! However, a point comes when change is inevitable, and it so happened to me.

in life when human beings feel that being at home is limiting their freedom, and at such times they wish to be out of the house as often as they can. To me, being at school was the happiest thing I could get. I still believed in the fact that obedience means doing everything as requested, giving it your best in pursuit of making your instructor, parent or guardian happy. I had become an apple of my parents’ eye and my teachers’

Good grades in my high school led me to the college of my parents’ choice to pursue a career of their choice. How could I argue with them, and I was labeled an obedient child from my childhood? Nobody expected me to argue in any way, and I did not have the guts either. I went on with my studies, for I dared not think about anything else. However, during the first semester, I had a feeling that that was not what I wanted.

under the leadership of some administration staff, they would visit the hunger stricken (Devoe 2). I had the zeal to help the disadvantaged, and this exposure only aroused my deep-rooted call. It was time to find meaning in my life.

During my school holidays, my life took a complete new turn. Instead of helping my parents do everything as requested, I revealed to them my interests (their reactions were nothing but an explosion!). ind anywhere, even in doing my parents’ course of choice in the college.

According to Frankl’s logotherapy theorem, life’s meaning can be found in doing a deed or creating work (Burger, FreIDie and Gert, 1-10). I chose to participate as a volunteer in the Charity Organization at the college since my heart felt the calling, from which my life’s meaning was defined. Whenever I found a chance in my school days especially on weekends, I would attend meetings organized by the organization’s patron, where we would receive some training on how to deal with disaster stricken people and assist in their emotional needs.

I graduated from college with distinction. I had been a bright student and, despite the career I pursued not being my calling, I still managed to do well. My Time had come when I had to break out of my chained life and get to the place where I would realize my purpose. After the short course, I joined the Red Cross mission groups through which I traveled to the hunger-stricken Africa for humanitarian aid in 2010. Being in the field was not the best experience that I could ever desire especially as we witnessed shocking levels of malnutrition among victims. In some cases, victims were so devastated by hunger that a person could not recall the last time he/she or even the children had taken any meal. The suffering was more psychological than it was physical, but I could not get any other satisfaction than to witness the hungry eat and afford a smile. Being there for them made them know that someone cared for them, and thus a hope to continue living. Serving in the Red Cross became my moment of change, and source of a satisfaction I could not have imagined. According to Frankl, doing a deed is one of the ways through which a person can acquire his/her life’s unique purpose (Devoe 3), and my unique life’s purpose had been discovered this way.

y they life than to risk my life while saving others!).

handle the challenges that come along with

As I mentioned earlier, one can lead a life without knowing their life’s purpose, just as it had happened to me. I had lived under the shadow of my parents’ interests, and I did everything to make them happy. However, a time comes in life when a person realizes that they have to discover their life’s purpose. When such a dawn comes, a transformation occurs and a drive to move forward becomes very forceful. Joining Red Cross and assisting in transforming lives in Sub- Saharan Africa brought fulfillment to my life, which I am ready to pursue to the end.

Works Cited

Bellin, Zvi. Exploring a holistic content approach to personal meaning. New York: New York University, 2009. Print.

Burger, Daniel H., FreIDie Crous, and Gert Roodt. “Exploring a Model for Finding Meaning in the Changing World of Work (Part 3: Meaning as Framing Context).” SA Journal of Industrial Psychology 39.2 (2013): 1-10. ProQuest. Web. 9 May 2015

Devoe, Dan. “Viktor Frankl’s logotherapy: The search for purpose and meaning”. Student Pulse 4.1 (2012): 1-3. Print.

Wong, Paul. The human quest for meaning: Theories, research and applications. New York: Routledge, 2013. Print.